People's Artist

What a novelist or a poet does to his writings, painter Atul Dodiya does to his visual images. Sleldom has work of art got such an outspoken and honest colours, as in the paintings of this Mumbai-Based well-known painter.

His Visual images are a testimony to the fact that art of any genre attains its best colours when it makes efforts to come close to the people and the society, which bestows the artist with his sensibility.

Atul-who credits Mumbai and Paris for brushing up his artistic sensibilities—has touched many an issue through his paintings.

Known for depicting ordinary middle-class Indian life, political events, poverty-stricken people and many autobiographical narratives, he has made an effort to make Gandhi relevant in the contemporary social and political happenings through his art work.

"1 would not mind if you call me people's painter," says Atul while talking to HT City after his slide­ cum-lecture held at the Government Museum and Art Gallery in Chandigarh on Monday evening under the aegis of Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi.

Replying to an elderly woman, who tells him that he shows so much pain in his works, Atul mentions that being an artist it is his responsibility to talk about the issues that affect our daily life. He tells that why he opts for realistic work is because he loves to share it with people. "Surroundings do matter in an artist's life," he says, adding that the wildness, excitement serenity of Mumbai has a great influence on him apart from Paris that has given him the courage to think differently. Personal tragedies too have influenced him, he adds.

"1 am not single-minded, there are layers within layers that motivate my creative instinct," says Atul who thinks that just knowing the skill is not the criterion to be an artist, rather visual sense and the art of seeing things differently is of utmost importance.

His rendezvous with Bollywood and some of the best cinema too have been featured in his works. He has experimented with installations and other genres of art.

Atul says that the artist in him motivates him to try different work. He informs that his series on non-realistic work in early 2000 received good, reviews and he wants to try pure abstract in future.

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